Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress she has made on (a) increasing the provision of and (b) improving sports pitches in the last five years.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We know that active people are fitter, happier and healthier - which is why in our new Sport Strategy - 'Get Active’ - we set out an ambitious strategy to boost our national health by getting 3.5 million extra active people by 2030.To help achieve this, Government is investing over £300 million between 2021 and 2025 to make essential facility improvements, so that communities have high-quality pitches to play on.
In 2021/22, 177 grassroots facilities projects across the UK were supported through the Football Foundation in England and the Football Associations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This includes the creation or resurfacing of over 80 artificial grass pitches, over 20 grass pitch improvements, and other projects such as changing rooms, floodlights and goalposts. Over 1,600 sites benefitted from funding in 2022/23 across a similar range of projects, improving both provision and quality of pitches.
2023/24 projects are currently being selected and we expect to publish this list of projects shortly.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has provided to Sport England in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The departmental funding in the form of Grant-in-aid to Sport England over the last 3 years is as follows:
Financial Year | £000s |
2020-21 | 222,150 * |
2021-22 | 163,761* |
2022-23 | 113,571 |
*These figures include additional investment to deliver the National Leisure Recovery Fund (NLRF) and the Sport Survival Package (SSP).
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an estimate of the number of people employed in the UK hospitality industry in each of the last five years.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publish a large range of labour market statistics, including releases that track the number of workers employed in the hospitality sector.
The ONS publish a detailed guide to using these statistics. As the guidance states, due to the survey design the preferred source for statistics at the industry level is the ONS JOBS02 workforce jobs by industry.
Data is also available from NOMIS, the official website for labour market statistics run by the University of Durham on behalf of the ONS.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an estimate of the number of people employed in the UK retail industry in each of the last five years.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publish a large range of labour market statistics, including releases that track the number of workers employed in the retail sector. The ONS publish a detailed guide to using these statistics. As the guidance states, due to the survey design the preferred source for statistics at the industry level is the ONS JOBS02 workforce jobs by industry.
Data is also available from NOMIS, the official website for labour market statistics run by the University of Durham on behalf of the ONS.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on obesity rates among children in the last five years; and when he plans to publish his Department's most recent data on Overweight children.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) collects data on the weight status of children aged 4-5 years (Reception) and 10-11 years (Year 6). The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities publishes national and local level data on Fingertips. The following table shows data on national obesity prevalence from the NCMP in the last five years.
Prevalence of obesity (including severe obesity) in England | ||
Year | Reception (%) | Year 6 (%) |
2017/18 | 9.5 | 20.1 |
2018/19 | 9.7 | 20.2 |
2019/20 | 9.9 | 21.0 |
2020/21 | 14.4 | 25.5 |
2021/22 | 10.1 | 23.4 |
The most recent NCMP data on overweight children will be published by NHS England on Thursday 19th October 2023. The report will present analysis of height and weight data recorded among children in reception (aged 4-5) and year 6 (aged 10-11) for the school year 2022/23.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of schools that purchased books through local bookshops in the last 12 months.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The National Curriculum requires teachers to encourage pupils to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information. It also emphasises the importance of listening to, discussing, and reading for themselves a wide range of stories, poems, plays and non-fiction books.
The Department believes that all pupils deserve to be taught a knowledge rich curriculum that promotes the extensive reading of books and other texts, both in and out of school. School libraries complement public libraries in allowing pupils to do this.
Overall, core schools funding (including funding for both mainstream schools and high needs) is £3.5 billion higher in 2023/24, compared to 2022/23. That is, on top of the £4 billion, year-on-year increase provided in 2022/23 – an increase of £7.5 billion, or over 15%, in just two years. It is for headteachers to decide how best to manage their budgets, including investment in resources such as library provision. This funding is not ringfenced and can include funding book corners, school libraries and librarians.
It is for individual schools to decide how best to provide and maintain a library service for their pupils, including whether to employ a qualified librarian. Many head teachers recognise the important role school libraries play in improving literacy and encouraging pupils to read for pleasure and ensure that suitable library facilities are provided. School libraries can take many forms, with some schools preferring to make books a focus in other ways, including housing them within classrooms.
Given the autonomy granted to schools, the Department does not collect information on the number and proportion of schools that purchased books through local bookshops in the last 12 months, or the average annual budget for primary school libraries.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average annual budget was for primary school libraries in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The National Curriculum requires teachers to encourage pupils to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information. It also emphasises the importance of listening to, discussing, and reading for themselves a wide range of stories, poems, plays and non-fiction books.
The Department believes that all pupils deserve to be taught a knowledge rich curriculum that promotes the extensive reading of books and other texts, both in and out of school. School libraries complement public libraries in allowing pupils to do this.
Overall, core schools funding (including funding for both mainstream schools and high needs) is £3.5 billion higher in 2023/24, compared to 2022/23. That is, on top of the £4 billion, year-on-year increase provided in 2022/23 – an increase of £7.5 billion, or over 15%, in just two years. It is for headteachers to decide how best to manage their budgets, including investment in resources such as library provision. This funding is not ringfenced and can include funding book corners, school libraries and librarians.
It is for individual schools to decide how best to provide and maintain a library service for their pupils, including whether to employ a qualified librarian. Many head teachers recognise the important role school libraries play in improving literacy and encouraging pupils to read for pleasure and ensure that suitable library facilities are provided. School libraries can take many forms, with some schools preferring to make books a focus in other ways, including housing them within classrooms.
Given the autonomy granted to schools, the Department does not collect information on the number and proportion of schools that purchased books through local bookshops in the last 12 months, or the average annual budget for primary school libraries.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if his Department will make an assessment of the impact of changes to permitted development rights for converting commercial buildings to residential use on local high streets; and if he will publish the findings of that assessment.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Permitted development rights for change of use to residential are making an important contribution to the delivery of new homes across the country, many of which may not have otherwise come forward through the planning system. We will continue to keep the rights under review.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the results of the independent evaluation of the NHS England Special Schools Eye Care Service; and what clinical data will be published on the eye care history of relevant children.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The NHS Long Term Plan made a commitment to ensure that children and young people with a learning disability and/or autism in special residential schools have access to sight checks in school. To fulfil that commitment, NHS England commenced a proof-of-concept programme in 2021, piloting sight testing and the dispensing of glasses in special schools.
NHS England are currently considering the independent evaluation of this programme and will set out next steps for how the eye care needs of people with learning disabilities should be commissioned shortly. Decisions about publication of data will be taken in due course.
Asked by: Justin Tomlinson (Conservative - North Swindon)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to create additional guidance on accessible play equipment in the National Model Design Code, published on 20 July 2021.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Government has set a clear vision to improve the everyday lives of disabled people as set out in the National Disability Strategy, to ensure that disability is not a barrier to people living full, independent lives where they can reach their full potential.
The Government’s guidance on creating well-designed places – the National Design Guide and the National Model Design Code are both part of the suite of national planning practice guidance that supports the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
The NPPF encourages the creation of places that are safe, inclusive and accessible and which promote health and well-being. In support of this, the National Model Design Code encourages the design of children's play areas to be inclusive and accessible. This document is intended to provide broad design principles. It is not within the scope of the document to provide expert advice on accessible play equipment.
There is independent and voluntary best practice guidance in the form of British and European standards on inclusive built environments including play areas and playgrounds, and for children’s play equipment. BS 8300-1:2018, BS EN 17210:2021 and BS EN 1176:2017. Their status is independent of government guidance. Local authorities can choose to use these voluntary best practice standards.